Cover fastener



w. F. NEWHOUSE 2,204,865

COVER FASTENER Original Filed No v. 18, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VENTOR. il/a e? F JVew/wwe ATTORNEY.

18, 1940. i w. F. NEwHous 2,204,865

COVER FASTENER Original Filed Nov. 18, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENT OR.

ATTORNEY.

Patented June 18, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT c erics Divided and this application September 12, 1938, Serial No. 229,435

I 12 Claims.

This invention relates to cover fasteners, and more particularly to the wire fasteners that are used to secure the covers of bushel or half bushel baskets in place, after the baskets are filled and ready to be shipped to the market.

Generally stated, the object of the invention is to provide a novel'and improved construction and arrangement whereby a wire cover fastener member is advantageously applied in position to span a gap or space in the marginal portion of the cover, adjacent the hoop thereof, so that the wire member on the side of the basket can be inserted upwardly, inside or behind the said member on the cover, more advantageously, or in a more convenient manner, the said cover member that spans the gap or space having its end portions suitably anchored in the cover, and this position of the wire member transversely of the said gap or space serving, in addition, to cause the pull of its end portion to be exerted more or less crosswise of the grain of the strips or sheets of veneer from which the cover is made, whereby the position of the wire member on the cover not only facilitates the interlocking of this member with the flexible wire member on the side of the basket, but also tends to prevent splitting of the grain of said strips or sheets,

when the cover is forced down and tightly secured in place.

It is also an object to provide certain details and features of construction and combinations tending to increase the general efliciency and desirability of a basket cover fastener of this particular character.

To the foregoing and other useful ends, the

invention consists matters hereinafter set forth and claimed and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. l. is a plan view of a basket cover provided with wire fastener members embodying the principles of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on line lll in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of a basket cover provided with a cover fastener embodying the principles of the invention, but showing a difierent form of the latter.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig.2, but showing a Fig. 9 is a fragmentary vertical section on line 9--9 in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary plan view showing different form of the invention. 7

Fig. 11 is a vertical section on line HH in Fig. 10 of the drawings.

As shown in Fig. l of the drawings, the cover has slats I that are. stapled to the upper edge of a hoop 2 in the ordinary manner, and has a socalled cross-slat 3 provided with projecting end portions for insertion through the ordinary handles of a bushel or half bushel basket. It will be seen thatthe two slats t are parallel, and are spaced apart, thus providing a gap or a space between them at each marginal portion of the cover. The wire cover members 5 are formed as shown, being tapered outwardly, and have their end'portions 6 inserted downwardly through the slats land then bent outwardly and inserted in the said hoop, whereby each wire member is effectively anchored in the cover structure. When a cover with wire members of this kind is placed on the basket, with the latter provided with upstanding wire loops or tongues, such as the loop-shaped tongues l, shown in Fig. '7 of the drawings, it will be seen that these tongues can be inserted upwardly inside or in rear of the middle portions of the members 5, and then bent down, as shown, to form hooks that hold the cover firmly in. place. The said ends 6 can be inserted partially through the hoop, or they can be inserted entirely through the latter and clinched on the outer side thereof, if desired.

If the wire cover member 8, as shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings, is set back a distance from the edge of the cover, as shown in Fig. 5 of the draw ings, then the wire loop or tongue 9 on the basket will extend upwardly as shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings, and will be bent down outside the hoop of the cover.

In Fig. 8, the wire cover member it is similar to the one shown in Fig. 1, but has its ends I! turned up between the wire and the inner edges of the two parallel slats t previously mentioned.

As shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the end portions I2 of the wire cover member can be extended outwardly onto the top of the hoop 2 previously mentioned, if desired. I

Thus, in each form of the invention, the wire cover member spans a gap or space in the marginal portion of the cover. This not only means that the wire cover member pulls crosswise of the grainof the veneer of the slats 4 and 4, which tends to obviate splitting, but in addition said gap or space makes it more convenient for the upward insertion of the wire loop or tongue on the basket. In some cases, the said wire loop or tongue can be inserted upwardly outside of the hoop, and in other cases it can be inserted upwardly inside of the hoop. For example, in Figs. 3 and 4, the cover member I3 is simply a straight piece of wire, extending transversely of the space between the two slats 4 and 4, and the basket loop or tongue 54 extends upwardly inside the hoop 2, in order to engage the member l3, and is then bent down outside of said hoop. But in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the basket loop or tongue 15 extends upwardly outside of said hoop, and is bent in the manner shown, to hold the cover down in place. The wire members on the cover may be anchored in various ways, but if the cover has a hoop, then the ends of the wire cover member are preferably engaged with this hoop, in one way or another, to more effectively anchor the member on the cover. But, as shown and described, in each form of the invention, the wire cover member spans, advantageously, as explained, a gap or space in the marginal portion of the cover.

In each form of the invention, therefore, the wire cover member is inserted downwardly through the wood slats at opposite sides of the space between the edges of the latter, in such a manner that the pull of the member is crosswise of the grain of the wood, and in a manner tending to draw the said edges together. However, with the reinforcing hoop on the bottom of the cover, spanning the under side or bottom of the said space, the two edges of the slats are held a fixed distance apart. The wire fastener member on the cover may extend straight across the space, from one end to the other, as shown in Fig. 3, or said wire member may have sides that converge outwardly to its middle portion, as shown in Figs. 1, 5, 8, and 10 of the drawings. Preferably, the said edges are parallel from one edge of the cover to the other, but it will be seen that there are various ways that can be used in arranging the slats, to provide one or more spaces for wire cover members, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

It is important to observe, therefore, that the space between the two slats 4, as shown in Fig. 1, for example, extends entirely across the cover, and extends between the points of downward insertion of each wire fastener through said slats, and that the hoop 2 forms an annular bottom rim for the cover, so that said space, which extends diametrically of the cover, is maintained fixed at both ends of the space, or at diametrically opposite sides of the cover.

This is a division of application, Serial No. 50,279, filed Nov. 18, 1935.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A basket cover comprising a pair of wood slats extending across the cover with a diametrically extending space formed between their adjacent edges, a wire cover fastener member spanping the top of said space at each end of the latter and having its two ends inserted downward in said slats at opposite sides of said space, so that the latter extends between the two points of insertion, adapting the fastener to pull crosswise of the slats in a manner tending to pull said edges together, when a pull is exerted outwardly on the middle of said member, a reinforcing hoop forming an annular bottom rim for the cover and spanning the bottom of said space, secured to the under side of the slats, to hold said edges a fixed distance apart at opposite sides of the cover, with clearance in said space between said member and the upper edge of said hoop, and

a flexible member fixed on the basket and extending upwardly in engagement with said wire member, and bent over the latter to form a hook to removably hold the cover in place, said points of insertion being located at the inner side of said hoop.

2. A structure as specified in claim 1, said edges being parallel entirely across the cover.

3. A structure as specified in claim 1, said wire member extending straight across said space from one said point of insertion to the other.

4. A structure as specified in claim 1, said wire member having sides converging outwardly in a common plane to a middle portion.

5. A structure as specified in claim 1, said flexible member extending upwardly outside said hoop.

6. A structure as specified in claim 1, said flexible member extending upwardly inside said hoop.

'7. A structure as specified in claim 1, said wire member being entirely inside said hoop when viewed from above.

8. A structure as specified in claim 1, said wire member extending outside of said hoop when viewed from above.

9. A structure as specified in claim 1, with the ends of the wire inserted in said hoop.

10. A structure as specified in claim 1, the ends of the wire being bent outwardly and upon the upper edge of said hoop.

11. A structure as specified in claim 1, the ends of the wire being bent against the under surface of the slats.

12. A structure as specified in claim 1, the ends of the Wire being bent straight up at one side of a cross section of said hoop.

WALTER F. NEWHOUSE. 

